EIGHTEEN
805 Words
🕊️ Chapter 18 – Secrets of Two Faces
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The rain had stopped, yet the air remained heavy—thick with secrets longing to escape.
Inside the dim warehouse, Xavier Roa Madrigal and Althea Moreno Reyes stood face-to-face with the woman they once believed to be a ghost of the past—
Lyka Reyes Sandoval, Althea’s half-sister.
> “I’m not a ghost, Ate,” Lyka said coldly, raindrops still sliding down her black jacket, her hand firm on the gun.
“But in the world of the Montemayors… sometimes, it’s safer to be dead.”
“Lyka…” Althea’s voice trembled as she took a cautious step closer.
“Why did you do this? Why did you let us believe you were gone?”
Their eyes met—behind Lyka’s cold gaze flickered years of pain and endurance.
> “Because I chose to live my own way—not the way they wanted me to.”
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Three Years Ago…
The memory burned like fire.
The old house in San Rafael was swallowed by flames—devouring photographs, memories, and the innocence of a young girl.
Bleeding and terrified, Lyka ran barefoot into the dark road as smoke consumed the night.
Then, a black car stopped.
Inside sat a woman with sharp, glassy eyes—Clarisse Navarro Montemayor.
> “Get in, Lyka,” Clarisse said calmly.
“Why are you helping me?” the trembling girl asked.
“Because I need a ghost,” Clarisse replied. “And you’re perfect for the part.”
From that night on, Clarisse hid her.
She changed her name, sent her abroad, and molded her into a silent weapon—a spy within the Montemayor Group.
To the world, Lyka Reyes Sandoval was dead.
But in the shadows, she became Clarisse’s eyes and ears.
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Present Day…
> “She used me, Ate,” Lyka confessed, clutching the soaked notebook that Althea had found earlier.
“She made me believe she was the only one who could help me. That if I wanted justice for Mama’s death, I had to obey her.”
Althea gasped.
> “Mama’s death? What do you mean—who killed her?”
Lyka’s expression hardened.
> “The Madrigals… or at least, that’s what she made me believe.”
The air grew cold as Xavier spoke, his voice calm but resolute.
> “My family had nothing to do with your mother’s death. Lyka, Clarisse lied to you. She never saved you—she used you.”
Lyka gave a trembling, bitter smile.
> “I know that now. But it’s too late to turn back. I owe her blood—a debt I can never repay.”
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Suddenly, the warehouse door burst open.
Marco Vera Monteverde stumbled in—soaked and bleeding.
> “Lyka! I know you don’t want to do this, but Clarisse is watching! There’s a sniper outside—we’re all targets!”
Lyka turned sharply toward the broken window.
Marco was right. A faint red laser dot blinked from the rooftop across the street.
> “Clarisse wants no witnesses,” Lyka muttered. “She’s cleaning up everyone connected to the project.”
“Project?” Xavier demanded.
> “Project Eterna,” Lyka replied. “An experiment by the Montemayor Group—to manipulate identity records, merge faces, names, and DNA. Lea Sandoval and Clarisse Navarro… they were the first prototypes.”
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Althea’s eyes widened, horror dawning in her face.
> “So the rumors were true… about the Montemayor Group’s identity-cloning project…”
Lyka nodded grimly.
> “They used me as a test subject. They faked my death. And now they want me dead again—so no trace of the experiment remains.”
She stepped closer, tears streaming down her cheeks.
> “Ate, I never wanted this. I just wanted to be free. But when you ask the Montemayors for help… you never come back.”
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> “Down!” Marco shouted.
Glass shattered. A bullet ripped through the wall beside Xavier.
Lyka fired back instantly—swift and precise, no longer the innocent sister Althea once knew.
Gunfire echoed in the dark until silence fell again—broken only by the soft patter of rain on the roof.
> “Lyka…” Althea whispered, trembling as she stepped forward. “Stop this. You don’t have to keep fighting for their lies.”
Slowly, Lyka lowered her gun. A faint, peaceful smile touched her lips.
> “I’m not fighting for them, Ate,” she murmured. “I’m fighting for myself. And if you want to live… forget we ever met.”
She turned and walked into the rain and smoke—the woman once loved by her family, now a ghost born from vengeance and sorrow.
- Writer
